The pop-culture of the time really played up the "romance" of the Apache way of life; a precursor to the more recent gangsta's paradise mentality encouraged by movies and rap songs. There would be a thesis in there, comparing c1900 Parisian street gangsterism with, say, 1980s New York.

Notably, as well as an interesting set of combat tricks, les Apaches also generated a spectacular "fighting dance" style:

It was almost a cliche in the popular fiction of the time to have the hero fight with an Apache savateur. Otherwise, they were infamous for mugging tricks such as the coup de pere Francois, which was allegedly devised by an "educated Apache" who reasoned that it was less legally risky to render a victim unconscious before robbing them than to injure or kill them.

Self defence authorities at the turn of the 20th century developed counters to the coup de pere Francois and similar Apache tricks. Classical Bartitsu includes a cane counter to "the kick of an expert kicker" and there is also the curious Bartitsu "overcoat trick", which may have been inspired by the Apache tactic of "hooding" a victim with a jacket or cloak: http://www.bartitsu.org/index.php/20...vercoat-trick/ .

I've also read that Apaches were found of sword canes and putting blades into the tips of their boots (I've also read about gangs in 19th Century New York and early 20th Century Glasgow doing the same thing).